POX

"POX is a very easy to pick up game, and a challenge for hardcore and casual gamers alike. I've seen players 7 to 65 years old enjoy POX. It takes a few games for most people to start winning, and after that quite a few more to play on the highest difficulty. Games like this convince me that coop pass-and-play games are no less viable than competitive ones."

Shnissugah

"I got this app today, and was surprised by how much I actually enjoyed it. It's quizzical, yet intellectual, and the prospect of saving lives, or hearing the dreaded screech that marks a death, pushes your brain to try even harder."

junejunejuniejune

"This game is both challenging and touching. When playing other games such as Angry Birds I never really think about how this could possibly be real. When it is your job to not let people die, you actually realize that death and vaccination is a struggle in abundance for people outside of my family's easy worry-free circle! Great job, this game is amazing!"

Masmoney!

"This game is a really interesting blend of an easy-to-learn game for the iPad and a play experience that makes the player really explore their decisions. The abstraction of what the player is doing creates a space where I was able to learn how I would react to the issues of vaccination and triage without adding any overt cultural prejudgements. I will be playing this for quite a while."

phildini

"Simple and elegant, does a good job of getting the point across. One of very few "fun" teaching games."

Eric Kaplan

"The game is fun to play alone or with a group of friends and I really enjoyed the cooperative aspect of this game. The aesthetic and packaging of the game is also quite pleasing."

Bulbwheatie

"This is a pretty fun cooperative game that also has an educational component. The mechanics are simple and easy to learn on the first play, but are interesting and interact enough to make it interesting on later plays."

Lucas

"Pox is among the most accessible games I've played in quite sometime. It takes little time to learn, and the in-game goal grabs you as soon as you start. (I find myself grimacing every time a person succumbs to the disease)."

Dranian

“A very fun game. Simple and elegant, does a good job of getting the point across. One of very few "fun" teaching games.”

POX: SAVE THE PEOPLE® is a cooperative board game that challenges 1–4 players to stop the spread of a deadly disease. Not only is the game fun, but through play, players understand group immunity and the need to vaccinate.

Many public health groups need to better promote immunizations in order to continue to prevent vaccine preventable diseases. Vaccinations against deadly diseases such as diphtheria, polio, and whooping cough were standard public health measures: kids today don’t worry about getting polio, for example. Due to suspicions about vaccines and links to other diseases, more parents refuse to immunize their children, which could lead to a national health crisis. Parents have misconceptions about vaccination. For example, some parents believe that vaccines are no longer necessary. This belief may stem from the idea that children develop immunity to diseases automatically through time, which is simply not true; these myths can lead to disaster. For example, whooping cough has reemerged in the United States. As the percentage of people vaccinated against whooping cough has decreased, the U.S. has lost “herd immunity” to whooping cough, thus allowing ways for contagion to spread among the populace.

Help! How do I play this game?
For an easy introduction to POX, try using the interactive walkthrough to lead you through your first few games!

Can I cure the red spaces where the infection begins?
Yes. Those spaces should be treated like normal infected people after the start of the game.

Do the different types of spaces matter for anything except Outbreak cards?
No.

Can a yellow space (vulnerable person) be chosen to become infected for an Outbreak card?
No. Vulnerable people can never be chosen for an Outbreak card.

Does an infected person surrounded by infected and dead people die?
Yes. An infected person not touching any healthy or immune people dies.

Does that mean an infected person on a corner dies extremely easily?
Yes. An infected person on a corner only needs to be surrounded by two infected people to die.

Do dead people spread the disease?
No. Dead people are not contagious in POX: SAVE THE PEOPLE.

What happens if there are no valid places to put an outbreak?
If you can’t place the outbreak, then you don’t. Then, because no new infections occurred, you vaccinate two people instead of the usual one.

If no new infections occur from a Spread card, may I pick the “vaccinate” and “cure” options once each?
Yes! When no new infections occur on a turn you get the benefit of the card twice. So for a spread you may: vaccinate six, or cure two, or cure one and vaccinate three.

Warning: In compliance with the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA) we are notifying you that some of the products we sell may contain small parts or parts that may break off potentially causing a choking hazard to small children. Please supervise small children to ensure their safety.

We make games. We study how people play. We think games can change the world. We think games are an art form. We believe games are capable of more. We teach with games. We speak out with games. We help people through games. We brainstorm. We research. We play. We are Tiltfactor.Game design for social change.